Heat stars won't rule out time off in coming games

March 29, 2013

NEW ORLEANS — There will be no halfway the balance of the season for the Miami Heat. It either will be all in, or out of uniform.

That was the consensus Friday when coach Erik Spoelstra and his players discussed how they would handle the balance of the regular season, with little in the way of meaningful games remaining on the schedule.

"We'll continue to try to improve our game, get ready for the playoffs, and we'll manage everything on a day-to-day basis from here on out," Spoelstra said in advance of Friday's game against the New Orleans Hornets at New Orleans Arena. "And we've struck that balance before, in the past. There's not a perfect formula to it, but we'll evaluate everything while we're trying to compete and get better."

At Friday morning's shootaround, that meant holding out point guard Mario Chalmers and power forward Udonis Haslem because of nagging ankle injuries, with Chalmers also held out of Friday's game.

Forward LeBron James said he would appreciate a break over the final two-plus weeks.

"I understand with the position that we're in now," he said, "I can use a game here or a game there, to kind of get my body just feeling a lot better before the playoffs start."

Guard Dwyane Wade, who was given two games off earlier in the week to rest a balky right knee, said being right for the playoffs is the priority, but that also includes maintaining a degree of continuity.

"We're at the point," he said, "where we want to make sure that guys are focusing on what we need to do and not be out there just waiting for the playoffs. So we still have basketball to play and we have to play it when we're on the court.

"But I think guys need to take the opportunity, as well, to clear minds and clear their bodies and get ready for what we're put together for."

While the Heat could chase the top overall playoff seed, Spoelstra generally has been content to rest his players once conference seeding is locked into place. That was the approach he took last season in sitting James, Wade and Chris Bosh as part of what he described as the team's "maintenance program."

"He's been smart about it the last couple of years, too," James said. "And I have to police my own self, because I don't like sitting. I have bumps and bruises like everyone else has in this league that probably could use some rest. But I hate sitting.

"But for the better of the team, for the better of myself, I may have to sit here and there for the last couple of weeks."

James, though, said if he does play, he won't hold back.

"If I'm on the floor, I'm going," he said. "And if I'm DNP or I'm sitting out because of injury, it's a reason. If I'm in uniform, I'm here to play at the highest level. And if I'm not, then I'll rest."

Both Wade and James said Spoelstra has been receptive to requests for time off.

"We're going to leave that up to our coach, and whatever he tells us to do, we're going to try to do," Wade said. "The biggest thing is we want to continue to play well, continue to work our habits. But also, we want to make sure guys are healthy going into the playoffs. But we'll leave it up to our head coach."

Spoelstra generally has put an emphasis on having his stars in the lineup at home games, with conference showdowns remaining against the New York Knicks, Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls at AmericanAirlines Arena.

But there also are lesser upcoming road games that are part of back-to-back sets, games against the Charlotte Bobcats, Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers.

"This time of the year, when you're playing, you want to make sure that we're doing the things we're supposed to," Wade said. "We want to continue to play well. But if there's anything that's questionable in your mind, especially as we get over this road trip and we get to some lesser games, then we have to be smart, so we'll see."